About this item
The phenomenal growth of gaming has inspired plenty of hand-wringing since its inception--from the press, politicians, parents, and everyone else concerned with its effect on our brains, bodies, and hearts. But what if games could be good, not only for individuals but for the world? In Power Play, Asi Burak and Laura Parker explore how video games are now pioneering innovative social change around the world.As the former executive director and now chairman of Games for Change, Asi Burak has spent the last ten years supporting and promoting the use of video games for social good, in collaboration with leading organizations like the White House, NASA, World Bank, and The United Nations. The games for change movement has introduced millions of players to meaningful experiences around everything from the Israeli-Palestinian conflict to the US Constitution. Power Play looks to the future of games as a global movement. Asi Burak and Laura Parker profile the luminaries behind some of the movement's most iconic games, including former Supreme Court judge Sandra Day O'Connor and Pulitzer-Prize winning authors Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn. They also explore the promise of virtual reality to address social and political issues with unprecedented immersion, and see what the next generation of game makers have in store for the future.
About the Author
Asi Burak is an award-winning video game creator, tech executive, and social entrepreneur.
He serves as the Chairman of Games for Change (G4C) , an influential organization with the mission to celebrate the positive power of digital games. G4C produces the Annual Games for Change Festival in New York City, now part of the Tribeca Film Festival. He is often interviewed by international media, and has been invited to speak at conferences and institutions including TED Talks, Harvard Kennedy School, the Clinton Global Initiative, Sundance, the Skoll World Forum, CES, SXSW, and the US Army War College.
Asi is a faculty member at the School of Visual Arts MFA in Design for Social Innovation, and he holds a Master of Entertainment Technology from Carnegie Mellon University.
